Carton

ABSTRACT

A carton for packaging an article is formed from a single piece blank of paperboard and includes a bottom wall, two end flaps each having two side flaps, two center side flaps, two end walls and two side walls. The normally oblique side and end walls and the end side flaps initially position the article to be packaged centrally of the bottom wall and combine with the bottom wall to form an air cell about the four sides of the article to protect it during shipment.

United States Patent 1191 1111 E Re. 28,460

Runs [45] Reissued July 1, 1975 CARTON 3,252,650 5 1966 Pryor 229 403,370,777 2/1968 Levi [75] Inventor. Ben am1n Rous, New York, N.Y.3,386,641 6,1968 Cassidym 3,386,642 6 I968 Y [73] Assgneei 3:22;???"3,399,821 9/1968 Riii g il olz.... 229 40 Filed p 24 1973 FOREIGNPATENTS OR APPLICATIONS [21] A N 400 803.348 1/1969 Canada 229/34 HWRelated US, Patent Documents Primary ExaminerWilliam I. Price AssistantExaminerStephen Marcus [64] 1 5323 ifig g Attorney, Agent, or FirmDarby& Darby Appl. No.: 31,239' Filed: Apr. 23, 1970 S RACT [52] us Cl"206/424, 229/40 A carton for packaging an article is formed from a sin-51 Int. c1.... I: I 13 6 5 6 5/02- B656 5/08 gle Piece blank 0fPaperboard and includes bomm [58] Field of Search 229/34 R 34 B, 34 HW,Wall two end flaps each having two Side flaps, 229/40 87 R 16 (3,16206/424 center side flaps, two end walls and two side walls. Thenormally oblique side and end walls and the end [56] References Citedsidet fllalps ifntiltlialllay tfgOSitiOnflthfiJlftiCig1L0 beupagkaggetdcenrayo e oomwa an com mew1 e 0- UNITED STATES PATENTS tom wall to forman air cell about the four sides of the g article to protect it duringshipment.

3,110,435 ll/l963 Layne, Sr... 229/40 3,137,435 6/1964 Meyers 229 40 3Clams 9 Drawmg F'gures 3,250,454 5/1966 Plunkett.... 229/34 HW 3 250,4555/1966 Plllnkett 229/34HW Reissuecl July 1, 1915 Y m. 28,460

4 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. I

INVENTOR. BEN JAMIN ROUS ATTORNEYS Reissued July 1, 1975 4 Sheets-Sheet2 FIG. 4

INVENTOR. 14 BENJAMIN Rous B od k pwvb IOll L i 22 IO ATTORNEYS ReissuedJuly 1, 1975 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 j FIG. 5

FIG. 7

INVENTOR. BENJAMIN ROUS I In ATTORNEYS Reissued July 1, 1915 R5. 28,460

4 Sheets-Shut 4 FIG. 6

INVENTOR. BENJAMIN O BY 31 b kw ATTORNEYS CARTON Matter enclosed inheavy brackets appears in the original patent but forms no part of thisreissue specification; matter printed in italics indicates the additionsmade by reissue.

in the carton packaging industry, it is conventional to provide tubularbumpers about the periphery of a carton to protect the contents of thecarton from injury during shipment. The hollow bumpers which are oftenton blank is often time-consuming and expensive, since the carton blanksare either shipped to the ultimate user with the tubular bumpers alreadyglued (thereby increasing shipping space and costs) or they are shippedin a substantially flat position and the tubular bumpers must be erectedby the ultimate user either manually (which is timeconsuming) or withexpensive machinery. Further adding to the cost of erecting tubularbumpers on cartons is the cost of gluing the bumpers to the cartonblanks to secure them in place. When a small article is to be packaged,such as a small single book, or numerous small articles, such aspamphlets, the time and expense of forming tubular bumpers on thepackaging carton to protect the articles is often not warranted.

It is also conventional in the carton packaging indus try to reinforcethe corners of a carton in order to protect the fragile corners of thepackaged article. Although the corners of a carton having tubularbumpers about its entire periphery are sufficiently reinforced,additional construction is necessary in those cartons having tubularbumpers on only two sides of the carton. This additional constructionusually takes the form of additional material at the corners of thecarton either integral with the carton corner or in the form of separatepacking material. As with the tubular bumpers, these reinforced cornersare timeconsuming and expensive to construct because of the additionalsteps and material necessary.

it is accordingly an object of this invention to provide a carton forpackaging an article which is relatively easy and inexpensive tomanufacture and erect and which provides an air cushion or cell aboutthe periphery of the article.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a carton forpackaging an article which automatically posi tions the articlecentrally of the carton air cell.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a carton forpackaging an article which has sufficient strength at the corners toprevent injury to the article.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a carton with an aircushion about its periphery which is adapted for packaging in high speedmachinery.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a carton with an aircushion about its periphery which is adapted to package a number ofsmall articles.

This invention provides a carton for packaging an article which isformed from a single piece of paperboard and which is composed of abottom wall, two end flaps each having side flaps, two side walls, twoend walls and two center side flaps. The end side flaps and the side andend walls combine with the bottom wall to form an oblique air cell aboutthe periphery of the article to be packaged. The side and end wallsextend upwardly at an angle from the bottom wall of the carton to forman oblique air cell about the packaged article. The end flaps and thecenter side flaps are folded over in an overlapping fashion parallel tothe bottom wall to form the top wall of the carton.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention, each of the end side flapsis folded over to form a reinforced double flap which is coextensivewith and angled to substantially the same degree as the side wall of thecarton. Each of the end side flaps engages a portion of the side of thepackaged article and positions it centrally of the carton bottom wall.The side walls and the end side flaps prevent the packaged article fromslipping or shifting to one side or the other in the carton so that theoblique air cell is continually maintained about the periphery of thearticle.

in an alternate embodiment of the invention, each of the end side flapsis L-shaped with the vertical portion extending downwardly from each endflap and the horizontal portion extending outwardly toward the cornerformed between the bottom wall of the carton and the side wall. The endflaps and the end side flaps in the alternate embodiment also serve toposition the packaged article in the carton and prevent it from slippingthereby maintaining the oblique air cell about its periphery.

Another feature of this invention is that the center side flaps whichare folded over parallel to the bottom wall of the carton and form thetop of the carton extend outwardly at their lateral edges to protect thecorners of the article against damage.

Another feature of this invention is that the oblique corners of thecarton are cut so as to close the corners against dirt or othercontaminants.

Another feature of this invention is that the carton is inexpensive tomanufacture. The formation of the oblique air cell by the side and endwalls reduces the amount of paperboard that would be necessary toachieve similar protection by using tubular bumpers. There is a furthersaving in that gluing is not necessary to keep the oblique air cell inposition as with the tubuiar bumpers. The only gluing required can bedone by the ultimate user and this gluing involves only a single lineacross the top of the carton to close it. Also, the carton of thisinvention can be shipped in a substantially flat position therebyreducing freight costs over the shipment of cartons having erectedtubular bumpets.

Another feature of this invention is that the carton is adapted to beused with existing high speed machinery whereas automatic packagingmachines for cartons having tubular bumpers are still being developed.

These and other objects and features of this invention wiil be morereadily understood and appreciated by reference to the followingdescriptions and drawings of which:

FIG. 1 is an enlarged plan view of an unerected carton of this inventionshowing the preferred embodi ment;

HG. 2 is an enlarged plan view of a partially erected portion of thecarton which is illustrated unerected in FIG. 3 is a perspective view ofthe erected carton which is illustrated unerected in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the carton illustrated in FIG. 3taken along the line 4-4;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the carton illustrated in FIG. 3taken along the line 5-5;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged plan view of an unerected carton of this inventionshowing an alternate embodiment;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged plan view of a partially erected portion of thecarton which is illustrated unerected in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the erected carton which is illustratedunerected in FIG. 6; and

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the carton illustrated in FIG. 8taken along the line 99.

Referring now to FIG. 1, the carton 2 is illustrated as it would appearafter having been cut and scored from a single piece blank ofpaperboard. The carton 2 includes a bottom wall 4, two center side flaps6 and 6' respectively, two end flaps 8 each having two side flaps 10,two end walls 13 and two side walls 15.

The substantially rectangular bottom wall 4 is bounded on two sides byscore lines 14 which separate the bottom wall from each of the sidewalls 15 which are substantially trapezoidal in shape. Each of the scorelines 14 is coextensive with the base of the adjoining trapezoidal sidewall 15. Score lines 18 separate each of the side walls 15 from each ofthe center side flaps 6 and 6' which are substantially rectangular inshape and which have lateral edges 28 and 28' respectively. The centerside flap 6 has a rectangular portion 24 at its extremity that underlaysthe outer edge 24 of flap 6'. This outer edge 24' receives glue whichadheres the flap portion 24 as well as the portion of end flaps 8underlying the glued outer edge of flap 6 when the carton is closed, asillustrated in FIG. 3.

The other two edges of the bottom wall 4 are bounded by score lines 12which separate trapezoidal shaped end walls 13 from the bottom wall.Each of the bases of the trapezoidal end walls 13 is coextensive withthe adjoining score line 12. The end flaps 8 are each separated from theend walls 13 by score lines 16. The end flaps 8 are substantiallyrectangular in shape and each have two end side flaps 10 at theirextremities. The end side flaps 10 are each hinged to an end of each ofthe end flaps 8 along score lines 20. The end side flaps 10 are dividedinto an inner portion 10 and an outer portion 10" by score line 22, eachportion being in the shape of a trapezoid with the bases of thetrapezoidal portions abutting each other and coextensive with the scoreline 22.

Referring not to FIG. 2, a portion of the carton 2 is illustrated in apartially erected position. The end wall 13 is shown in an erectedposition having been bent along score line 14 to form an acute anglewith the bottom wall 4. The end flap 8 has been bent along score line 16so as to be substantially parallel to the horizontally extending bottomwall 4. The inner portion 10' of the end side flap 10 is bent downwardlyfrom end flap 8 along score line 20 so as to form an angle with thebottom wall 4 which is substantially similar to the angle formed withthe bottom wall by the end wall 13. The outer portion 10'' of the sideend flap 10 is bent along score line 22 so that it is substantiallyparallel to the unerected horizontally extending side wall 15. When theside wall 15 is erected, as illustrated in FIG. 3, the end side flapouter portion 10" is bent along score line 22 so as to overlie the endside flap inner portion 10'. The article 26 to be packaged, such as abook for example, is partially illustrated in dotted lines in FIG. 2.The end edge of the article 26, in FIG. 2, is coextensive with scorelines 16 on the partially erected carton.

Referring now to FIG. 3, the erected carton 2 is illustrated. The endwalls 13 and the side walls 15 are bent along score lines 12 and 14respectively to form acute angles with the bottom wall of the cartonthereby forming an oblique air cell or air cushion about the peripheryof the carton. The oblique air cell provides protection for the article26 in the carton in the same manner as cartons which have tubularbumpers about their periphery.

The center side flaps 6 and 6' are folded along the score line 18 so asto be substantially parallel to the horizontally extending bottom wall 4and the upper surface of the article 26. The center side flap 6 havingthe rectangular portion 24 is folded under the other center side flap6'. Glue may be applied to the inner contacting surface of the outeredge 24" or a strip of tape may be applied to the outer surface of theouter edge so as to adhere to the end flaps 8 to securely close thecarton. The center side flaps 6 and 6' are closed tightly against thearticle 26 contained within the carton.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a cross-sectional view of the article 26contained with the erected carton 2 is illustrated. The oblique aircushion is formed by the side wall 15 and the portion 4' of the bottomwall 4 on which the article 26 is not supported. The article 26 isprevented from laterally shifting into the oblique air cell by the endside flaps 10. The corner 26' formed by the top and side of the article26 is engaged by the end side flap inner portion 10' which forms anacute angle with the bottom wall substantially similar to the angleformed by side wall 15; and the end side flap outer portion 10 which isfolded over the inner portion 10' so as to be coextensive with itengages the inner surface of the side wall 15. The cooperation of theend side flap 10 with the side wall 15 prevents the article 26 fromshifting or slipping into the oblique air cushion. This embodiment ofthe invention is better adapted to packaging a single item, such as abook, in which the lower portion would not shift into the oblique aircell as long as the upper portion of the article (corner 26' in FIG. 4)was restrained. The alternate embodiment of this invention, as isdescribed below, is specifically adapted to package a number of loosearticles so that they do not shift into the oblique air cell.

Referring now to FIG. 5, the oblique air cell formed by the end wall 13and the portion 4" of the bottom wall 4 on which the article 26 is notsupported is illustrated. The corner formed by the end wall 13 and theend flap 8 at the score line 16 engages the corner 26" of the article 26and prevents the article from shifting into the oblique air cell.

Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 5, the outer lateral edges 28 and 28' ofcenter side flaps 6 and 6' respectively are extended outwardly so as tooverlap the junction of end wall 13 and end flap 8 at score line 16. Thelateral edges 28 and 28' are extended outwardly to provide furtherprotection against damage for the article 26 in the event the carton isdropped or crushed on its upper end edge. It is not necessary to extendthe lateral edges 28 and 28 outwardly across the entire width of thecarton since the extension at the corners provides the necessarystrength. Also, if the carton is sealed with Re. i 28 ,460

tape, the recessed'edge formed at the center of'the carton by lateraledges 28 and 28' permits continuous contact between the'tape and thecarton.

' Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, the end walls 13 and the end sideflaps also position the article 26 centrally of the bottom wall 4 sothat the oblique air cell extends about the periphery of the article.

Referring now to FIG. 6, the carton 42. is illustrated as it wouldappear after having been cut and scored from a single piece blank ofpaperboard. With the exception of those features of the alternateembodiment of this invention described below, the numerals in FIGS. 6-9which are the same as numerals appearing in FIGS. 1-5 representcorresponding features of the preferred embodiment of this invention.Accordingly, those features of the alternate embodiment of the inventiondesignated by numerals appearing in FIGS. 1-5 (generally, numerals 2-28)respond to the same description as, and are the same as, those featuresin the preferred embodiment designated by corresponding numerals.

The alternate embodiment of this invention primarily differs from thefirst embodiment of this invention in the structure and function of theend side flaps 50 which are at the extremities of the end flaps 8. Theinner portion 50' of the side end flap is hinged to the outer portion50" of the flap by alternately cut score line 62. The cuts in the scoreline reduce the resiliency of each portion of the end side flap withrelation to the other end side flap so that the position the end sideflap assumes has less of a tendency to be disturbed than if there wereno cuts in the score line. The end side flap outer portion 50" issubstantially in the shape of a rectangle while the end side flap innerportion 50' is substantially in the shape of a trapezoid.

Another difference between the alternate embodiment of this inventionand the preferred embodiment is that the side walls 55 in the alternateembodiment are substantially rectangular in shape, instead oftrapezoidal as in the preferred embodiment. Furthermore, the center sideflaps 46 and 46' extend outwardly from the score lines 18 so that theirlateral edges 68 and 68 respectively are coextensive with the lateraledges of the side walls 55. The lateral edges 68 and 68' then taper asthey proceed further outwardly and finally extend outwardly in astraight line.

Referring now to FIG. 7, the carton illustrated unerected in FIG. 6 isshown partially erected in FIG. 7. The end wall 13 is bent along thescore line 12 to form an acute angle with the bottom wall 4 of thecarton and the end flap 8 is bent along score line 16 to a positionwhich is substantially parallel to the horizontally extending bottomWall 4. The end side flap inner portion 50 (not shown) is bent along thescore line 20 so as to be perpendicular to the bottom wall 4. The endside flap outer portion 50" is bent along alternately cut score line 62so as to be substantially parallel to the horizontally extending bottomwall 4.

Referring now to FIG. 8, the carton 42 is shown in an erect position. Inview of the rectangular shape of the side walls 55 and the continuationof the lateral edges 68 and 68' so as to be coextensive with the edgesof the side walls 55, the corner 66 formed at the junction of the sidewall 55 and the center side flap 46 juts outwardly so as to even withthe lateral edge 12 of the bottom wall of the carton thereby affordinggreater protection at the corners of the carton.

3 Referring now to FIG. 9, the vertically extending endlarlyadaptedforpackaging a number of smaller articles because thevertically extending inner portion member 50' engages thes'ides of allthe articles 66 and prevents them=fromsliding laterally into the obliqueair cell. Furthermore, as in the preferred embodiment, the

end side flaps 50 and the end walls 13 position the arti cles 66 tobepackaged centrally of the bottom .wall.

While embodiments of various aspects of the inven tion have been shownin the drawings, it .is to be understood that this disclosure is for thepurpose of illustration only and that various changes in shape,proportion and arrangement of parts, as well as the substitution ofequivalent elements for those herein shown and described, may be madewithout departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as setforth in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A carton for packaging an article comprising:

a bottom wall, a first and second pair of walls, each of said first andsecond pair of walls being joined to said bottom wall, said second wallsbeing oblique with respect to said bottom wall, said oblique secondwalls forming an air cell for protecting the article in the carton, afirst flap being joined to each of said first walls and being parallelto said bottom wall, a second flap being joined to each of said secondwalls and being parallel to said bottom wall, at least one of said firstflaps including a pair of third flaps, each of said pair of third flapsbeing positioned at each end of said first flap, each of said pair ofthird flaps including a first member and a second member, said first andsecond members being hinged along a common score line, said common scoreline being positioned to bear against the intersection between saidsecond and bottom walls L], at least a portion of said first memberbearing against the article for positioning the article centrally ofsaid bottom wall and preventing the article from slipping into the aircell.

2. A carton for packaging an article comprising:

a bottom wall, a first and second pair of walls, each of said first andsecond pair of walls being joined to said bottom wall, said second wallsbeing oblique with respect to said bottom wall, said oblique secondwalls forming an air cell for protecting the article in the carton, afirst flap being joined to each of said first walls and being parallelto said bottom wall, a second flap being joined to each of said secondwalls and being parallel to said bottom wall, at least one of said firstflaps including a pair of third flaps, each of said pair of third flapsbeing positioned at each end of said first flap, each of said pair ofthird flaps including a first member and a second member, said first andsecond members being hinged along a common score line, said first andsecond members being folded over so as to be coextensive with each otherand contiguous with said second walls, at least a portion of said firstmember bearing against the article for positioning the article centrallyof said bottom wall and preventing the article from slipping into theair cell.

3. A carton for packaging an article comprising:

a bottom wall, a first and second pair of walls, each of said first andsecond pair of walls being joined to said bottom wall, said second wallsbeing oblique with respect to said bottom wall, said oblique secondwalls forming an air cell for protecting the article in the carton,] afirst flap being joined to each of said first walls and being parallelto said bottom wall, a second flap being joined to each of said secondwalls and being parallel to said bottom wall, at least one of said firstflaps including a pair of third flaps, each of said pair of third flapsbeing positioned at each end of said first flap, each of said pair ofthird flaps including a first member and a second member, said first andsecond members tecting the article in the carton. l k

1. A carton for packaging an article comprising: a bottom wall, a firstand second pair of walls, each of said first and second pair of wallsbeing joined to said bottom wall, said second walls being oblique withrespect to said bottom wall, said oblique second walls forming an aircell for protecting the article in the carton, a first flap being joinedto each of said first walls and being parallel to said bottom wall, asecond flap being joined to each of said second walls and being parallelto said bottom wall, at least one of said first flaps including a pairof third flaps, each of said pair of third flaps being positioned ateach end of said first flap, each of said pair of third flaps includinga first member and a second member, said first and second members beinghinged along a common score line, said common score line beingpositioned to bear against the intersection between said second andbottom walls(.) , at lest a portion of said first member bearing againstthe article for positioning the article centrally of said bottom walland preventing the article from slipping into the air cell.
 2. A cartonfor packaging an article comprising: a bottom wall, a first and secondpair of walls, each of said first and second pair of walls being joinedto said bottom wall, said second walls being oblique with respect tosaid bottom wall, said oblique second walls forming an air cell forprotecting the article in the carton, a first flap being joined to eachof said first walls and being parallel to said bottom wall, a secondflap being joined to each of said second walls and being parallel tosaid bottom wall, at least one of said first flaps including a pair ofthird flaps, each of said pair of third flaps being positioned at eachend of said first flap, each of said pair of third flaps including afirst member and a second member, said first and second members beinghinged along a common score line, said first and second members beingfolded over so as to be coextensive with each other and contiguous withsaid second walls, at least a portion of said first member bearingbearing against the article for positioning the article centrally ofsaid bottom wall and preventing the article from slipping into the aircell.
 3. A carton for packaging an article comprising: a bottom wall, afirst and second pair of walls, each of said first and second pair ofwalls being joined to said bottom wall, said second walls being obliquewith respect to said bottom wall, (said oblique second walls forming anair cell for protecting the article in the carton,) a first flap beingjoined to each of said first walls and being parallel to said bottomwall, a second flap being joined to each of said second walls and beingparallel to said bottom wall, at least one of said first flaps includinga pair of third flaps, each of said pair of third flaps being positionedat each end of said first flap, each of said pair of third flapsincluding a first member and a second member, said first and secondmembers being hinged along a common score line, said first member beinghingedly connected to said first flap, said first and second membersextending perpendicularly and contiguously respectively with respect tosaid bottom wall, at least a portion of said first member bearingagainst the article for positioning the article centrally of said bottomwall and preventing the article from slipping into the air cell(.) ,each of said first members and said oblique second walls formingrespectively one leg and the hypotense of a right triangular air cellfor protecting the article in the carton.